Friday, April 29, 2011

The N.C. 17-and-under state championships started Friday and continue with Saturday's second round. Games are at 11:15 a.m. at Hopewell, Myers Park, North Meck and Charlotte Catholic. The semifinals are at Hopewell Saturday at 6 and 7:30 p.m. The championship game is at Hopewell at 3:45 Sunday.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

The most significant changes in weight classes in high school wrestling in 23 years will take place in the 2011-12 season.

In its April 4-6 meeting in Indianapolis, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Wrestling Rules Committee approved an upward shift of the weight classes, beginning with the 103-pound class moving to 106 pounds, which resulted in new weights for 10 of the 14 classes. The changes in weight classes, along with 17 other rules revisions, were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

The 14 weight classes approved by the committee for 2011-12 are as follows: 106 (pounds), 113, 120, 126, 132, 138, 145, 152, 160, 170, 182, 195, 220 and 285. Three middle weight classes – 145, 152 and 160 – were retained, although they are 7-8-9 in order now rather than 8-9-10. The largest weight class (285 pounds) remains unchanged as well.

“The change in weight classes resulted from a three-to-four year process utilizing data from the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Optimal Performance Calculator,” said Dale Pleimann, chair of the NFHS Wrestling Rules Committee and former assistant executive director of the Missouri State High School Activities Association. “The rules committee was able to analyze data from almost 200,000 wrestlers across the country, with the goal to create weight classes that have approximately seven percent of the wrestlers in each weight class.

“Throughout the process, each state association was kept completely informed and was provided multiple opportunities for input. The results of the last survey of each state association indicated that the majority of states favored a change, and the committee listened and acted accordingly.”

The last wholesale shift in weight classes occurred in 1988, when the lowest weight class was increased from 98 to 103 pounds. The only other changes since then were in 2002, when the number of classes went from 13 to 14 and the 215-pound weight class became mandatory, and in 2006, when the 275-pound class was increased to 285 pounds.

Among changes in wrestling holds, the Figure 4 around the head has been ruled an illegal hold/maneuver. Previously, the Figure 4 was illegal around the body or both legs.

“This move was being used by high school wrestlers more and more on the head, so to minimize the risk of injury, the committee voted to outlaw the Figure 4 on the head as well as around the body and both legs,” said Bob Colgate, NFHS assistant director and liaison to the Wrestling Rules Committee.

Another significant change was made in Rule 2-1-3, which now makes the boundary line inbounds and, thus, expands the wrestling area. Previously, a wrestler was out of bounds if he or she was touching any part of the 2-inch-wide line which marks the wrestling area.

An additional exception was added to Rule 8-2-1 stating that if the second injury time-out is taken at the conclusion of the second period, and the opponent already has the choice at the beginning of the third period, the opponent would then have the added choice at the first restart after the beginning of the third period.

“Previously, at the end of the second period and before the third period, Wrestler A takes his or her second injury time-out, which now gives the choice to Wrestler B,” Colgate said. “However, it’s already Wrestler B’s choice by virtue of the original flip of the disk. Therefore, Wrestler B gains no advantage or benefit from Wrestler A’s second injury time-out. With this change, Wrestler B would now have his or her choice at the first restart after the beginning of the third period.”

In other changes, a revision in Rule 3-1-13 allows the referee the flexibility to determine his or her best position to monitor the clock and wrestlers during injury, blood or recovery time-outs. Also, language in Rule 6-2-2 was changed from “forfeit” to “disqualification” to reflect correct terminology.

The rules committee also devoted considerable time to developing rules for multi-team dual meets and team-formatted tournaments. Previously, the NFHS Wrestling Rules Book addressed only dual meets and individually bracketed tournaments. Definitions for individually bracketed tournaments, dual meet/team-formatted tournaments and combination tournaments will be contained in Rule 1-3.

“In recent years, high school wrestling has moved from dual meets and individually bracketed tournaments to tournaments incorporating a dual meet/team format,” Pleimann said. “The new Rule 11 will provide rules coverage for this type of tournament format.”

“High school wrestling is in great shape across the country as participation numbers continue to increase. The rules committee did propose 18 changes to the rules book, but approximately two-thirds of those changes resulted from incorporating the new dual meet/team format rules,” Pleimann added.

The final change is one that has been approved by the NFHS Board of Directors for use in all NFHS rules books regarding the meet referee’s jurisdiction. The rule extends the clerical duties of the referee beyond the end of the meet through the completion of any reports required from actions that occurred while the referees had jurisdiction.

Points of emphasis adopted by the committee for 2011-12 include communicable diseases, injury time-outs, coach/referee conference, and concussion recognition and management.

Wrestling is the sixth-most popular sport for boys at the high school level with 272,890 participants in 10,363 schools during the 2009-10 season, according to the NFHS Athletics Participation Survey. In addition, 6,134 girls were involved in wrestling in 1,009 high schools.

CHAPEL HILL – Ray Horton of Pender High School and Zoe Bell of Ardrey Kell High School in Charlotte are the recipients of the sixth annual Toby Webb Coach of the Year Awards given by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.

The two outstanding coaches will be recognized at the NCHSAA’s Annual Meeting on May 5 at the Smith Center on the campus of the University of North Carolina.

The Webb Award is made possible through the generosity of gifts from individuals and companies through the NCHSAA Endowment and annually recognizes an outstanding male and female coach. To be eligible for the award, a coach must be nominated by school personnel at the NCHSAA member school where he or she coaches, to have coached for a minimum of 10 years, and have made major contributions to the success of high school athletics at the school, in the community and beyond.

Horton has been at Pender for the past 26 years and has 32 years of coaching experience. During his career he has served as a head coach in football, women's basketball, track and field and volleyball. His volleyball record is phenomenal, with a career slate of 607-112 and state championships in 2009 and 2010, and four runner-up finishes.
A Vietnam veteran, Horton has also been active at Pender in other ways. For example, he built the trophy case that sits in the gymnasium lobby to house the awards from the school's 35-year history. And when another school in Pender's conference had a change in volleyball coaches and the new coach was not very experienced in volleyball, he offered and then ran a week-long summer camp at the rival school to help build its program, even though Pender would play the school twice during the regular season.

Bell has been at Ardrey Kell for three years after 19 years at Charlotte's Providence High, which opened in 1989, and has a total of 29 years of coaching experience. Her volleyball teams at Providence won 12 conference titles and four state crowns and her Ardrey Kell team made the state finals in 2009. Her career record in that sport is an outstanding 488-111.

She has also made community service a priority, as among other projects her volleyball teams have raised money for breast cancer in the Serve For The Cure Tournament for the last seven years.

"Ray and Zoe are dedicated professionals who epitomize in many ways the role of coaches and the far-reaching impact they have," said NCHSAA commissioner Davis Whitfield. "They are most deserving of this recognition and receiving the prestigious Toby Webb Award is a credit to their service and dedication to young people."

The awards are given in honor of Toby Webb, a member of the NCHSAA Hall of Fame who was an outstanding coach as well as a principal and superintendent. He helped turn Albemarle into a football power and posted a brilliant 103-18-6 mark as a head coach there.

Providence Day School senior Kevin Hickson signed with Wofford Tuesday.

“I am very proud of Kevin and thrilled that he is going to have the opportunity to
play basketball at the next level,” said Providence Day boys coach Brian Field. “This has been a dream of his for many years and he has worked incredibly hard to reach this goal. I am confident that Kevin's best days as a basketball player are still ahead of him.”

Saturday, April 23, 2011

West Charlotte boys basketball coach Baronton Terry said he couldn't imagine what winning the N.C. 4A state championship last month would mean for his school and his team. Terry said the Lions' win in Chapel Hill has transformed the school, the student body and his team. It's restored some pride in a school that was once among the state's best academically and athletically.

Today, West Charlotte wins the Observer's Sweet 16 basketball championship after a 28-2 season. Salisbury's girls, a 2A team that won 27 straight games after losing to national power Butler, is the girls Sweet 16 champion.

The Hornets won their third straight state championship, beating East Bladen 76-44, the largest margin of victory in 34 years in the 2A state final. Salisbury became the first girls team to win three straight 2A titles.

West Charlotte won its seventh state title overall and its fifth in 25 years. West Charlotte won its last 14 games and beat six postseason opponents by a combined total of 129 points.

After the state final win, the Lions got a visit from Gov. Bev Perdue and did a whirlwind local media tour, including taking in a Bobcats game.

"It's been great," Terry said. "And the kids have changed and I have changed, too. They've gotten a little more serious. I think it's not as hard for me to try to sell anything to them. They pretty much understand what's at stake now and the workouts have been great. They are working really, really hard."

Last week, at open gym, coaches from Charlotte, N.C. State, Boston College, Louisville and about 10 other schools were watching Lions stars like Kennedy Meeks and Mike Brown. West Charlotte will graduate I-Meck 4A player of the year Jacoby Davis and two other seniors, but the bulk of the team returns, along with several talented junior varsity players moving up.

Since Dave Price's South Mecklenburg teams won three state titles in a row from 1970-72, only two schools have repeated as state champs in the 4A class: West Charlotte (1991-92) and Winston-Salem Reynolds (2000-02).

Terry thinks his team will have a chance to join that elite company.

"I don't think there's any pressure, though," he said. "Our kids have grown to a point where they don't expect anything less. They want to go back and they want to repeat. They know what it takes now and they've got a taste of what it's like to win, but things have to go right for you."

Things certainly went right last season.

"This year," Terry said, "was really good. For example, Jacoby was MVP of the regional championship. Mike Brown was our team MVP in the state championship and Kennedy (Meeks) was the overall MVP. It wasn't just one person doing it. It was a team effort."

Friday, April 15, 2011

Chelsea Wilkinson, Alexander Central softball (girls): Wilkinson threw back-to-back perfect games Tuesday and Thursday. Tuesday, she helped her team to a 4-0 win against Hickory St. Stephens. Thursday, she struck out 15 in a win against R-S Central. Alexander Central (14-0), No.2 in the Sweet 16, is ranked No.2 in (National Fastpitch Coaches Association) and No. 3 (MaxPreps) in two national polls.
For the season, Wilkinson is 14-0 with 11 shutouts, five no-hitters and four perfect games.Brantley Smith, Grace Academy baseball (boys): hit for the cycle Monday against Monroe Central Academy and finished four games last week, batting 9-for-12 with a home run, a triple and four doubles.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

The CJV Blaze 16, coached by Ardrey Kell’s Zoe Bell, won the 96-team Big South National Qualifier in Atlanta. The team lost one set all tournament, in the championship, and was unbeaten in 10 matches. The Blaze qualified for the 2011 USA Volleyball Junior Nationals in July.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Dalton Shaw, West Meck baseball (overall): held previous conference unbeaten Charlotte Catholic to one run and ran his record to 5-0 in an upset of the Cougars Friday. He pitched the gem on a night when West Meck honored his mother, who is a cancer survivor.Dominique Wilson, Lake Norman softball: went 6-for-10 last week with three home runs and six RBIs. She bats better than .400 for the season.Emily Huneycutt, West Stanly softball: 2-for-3 against Unionville Piedmont Friday with two home runs and four RBIs in a 7-3 win.Stephen Wallace, South Stanly baseball: 2-for-3 with a pair of two-run home runs in a 7-6 win over rival Albemarle Friday.Hot PlayersCheyenne Burnam, Weddington girls lacrosse: Scored five of her team’s nine goals in a conference win over rival Marvin Ridge last week, including the game winner.Mike Hart, Hough boys lacrosse: 11 goals and three assists in two games last week. Won 20-of-24 face offs. Hart has 49 goals in 14 games.Grant Hurd, Charlotte Latin lacrosse: Had three goals and eight assists to help Latin to three wins last week. Has 11 goals and 14 assists for the season.Caitlin Kurtz, Marvin Ridge softball: Pitched 20 innings last week, struck out 23 and gave up one earned run. Had a perfect game against Monroe Parkwood, her third of the season.Danny Lucas, Butler boys lacrosse: 16 goals in three games last week including game-winner in OT against Waxhaw Cuthbertson.Cody Plemmons, Claremont Bunker Hill baseball: Threw a no-hitter in a 12-0 win over East Burke last week, while going 3-for-5 batting with five RBIs.Colin Walls, Country Day baseball: Hit .667 in three games last week with three doubles, two home runs and nine RBIs. Country Day (11-1) has won 10 straight, outscored opponents 136-23 and bats .401 as a team.Robert Whaley, Hickory baseball: threw a complete game ina 3-1 win over Alexander Central last week with four strikeouts. Allowed only three hits.

Jessica Dolittle, Providence girls diving: Committed to Clemson this week. Dolittle finished in the top five at the N.C. 4A state meet this season.

Ally Finical, Charlotte Latin girls track: Broke school's 1,600-meter run record with a run of 5 minutes, 12 seconds on March 30 at Providence Day.

Jamie Harkey, West Lincoln girls track: Junior has qualified for regionals in high jump and tied school record. Teammate Kelsey Mosteller has seven first-place finishes in eight events.

Shanie McConnell, East Gaston softball: Led her team to a 13-0 win against Charlotte Catholic on Thursday in matchup of teams unbeaten in ME-GA 7 entering the game. McConnell, a senior right-hander with recruiting interest from Charlotte and Western Carolina, threw a five-hit shutout. She's 9-0 and has 75 strikeouts in 49 innings. Her ERA is 0.40

Jonathan Martin, Concord First Assembly baseball: Threw one-hit shutout in this week's 1-0 win against Gaston Christian. He pitched all seven innings, walked two and struck out nine. First Assembly is 8-5.

Elliott Pope, Hopewell boys basketball: Signed with Carson-Newman on Thursday. Pope is a three-year varsity starter who was first-team all-conference. He's a member of his school's National Honor Society and DECA club.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

The Charlotte Country Day Varsity Baseball team is raising awareness and funds for the Susan B. Komen Foundation this Friday night at a home game versus Cannon School. The CCDS third annual “Strikeout Breast Cancer” game is at 7 pm at Ed Walton Field. The team will be in pink and they ask their fans to wear pink to the game.

Friday is also "Hope for a Cure" night at Hopewell. Hopewell's softball, lacrosse, baseball and softball teams will all support efforts to raise money for cancer awareness via T-shirt sales, silent auctions and more. Hopewell plays Hough in all sports beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Ashley Christy, Marvin Ridge softball: In Tuesday’s 9-1 win over Monroe Parkwood, Christy was 1-for-2 with a grand slam and four RBIs. Monday, she was 3-for-4 and scored five runs in a 10-0 win over Indian Land. In her last five games, she’s 11-for-13 with two home runs and 12 RBIs.
Hannah Duchardt, Providence Day softball: 3-for-5 with 4 RBIs in wild 20-8 win over CISAA rival Charlotte Country Day. Lauren Jordan (2-for-4, 3 runs, 2 RBIs) also had a big game for the Chargers. Country Day’s Elizabeth Dooley was 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Providence Day scored 10 runs in the top of the seventh and final inning.
Landon Fuller, Providence softball: 3-for-3 with two RBIs in 15-0 win over Rocky River.

Travis Hallman, Southlake Christian baseball: 3-for-3 with a double, a homer and four RBIs in 18-4 win over Rock Hill Westminster Catawba. Teammate Jared Fortune was 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs.

The North Carolina Athletic Directors Association (NCADA) has started a new non-profit service to aid families in being properly educated about the athletic collegiate recruiting process.

The Recruiting Education Foundation Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit venture, is now providing NCADA with recruiting webinars for high school athletes and their families in the state of North Carolina. The webinar is available at no cost, and can be accessed through the homepage of www.ncada.info.

“All too often our families are being tempted to spend money in order to have their child recruited," said NCADA Executive Director Jerry McGee. "(The) NCADA feels families should listen to our recruiting webinar prior to allocating any sum of money into recruiting. NCADA feels this service will do a long way in properly educating families about the recruiting process and assist them in making proper decisions about the recruiting process.”

The webinar addresses these and other recruiting topics:

-- Three rules of being a parent

-- Scholarship myths and facts

-- NAIA and JUCO education

-- Scholarships, do they differ?

-- Dangers of social networking/cell phones

-- National Letter of Intent

-- NCAA core course requirements

“There is a misunderstanding," McGee said, "that the recruiting process doesn’t start until a student’s junior or senior year. Families and students who have aspirations of playing sports in college must begin to prepare themselves for the recruiting process starting in their freshman year of high school.”

Mitch Brown, Providence Day tennis: Playing Nos. 4 and 6 singles and No. 2 doubles (with Mac Lothrop), Brown sparked doubles wins against Charlotte Catholic, Raleigh Ravenscroft and Durham Academy. In singles, he had clinching point against Catholic. Today, Brown and the Chargers will face rival Charlotte Country Day in what could be a state final preview.

Sam Carpenter, Forest City Chase softball: 5-for-5 against Morganton Freedom last week. Junior also had three stolen bases.

Varonica Johnson, Providence Day girls' track: At the Blue Ridge Classic, won the 100 meters (12.03 seconds) and broke meet record in 200 (25.09). Named girls' meet most valuable player.

Syke Klink, South Mecklenburg girls' lacrosse: Led team to first win against Southwestern 4A rival Butler. In 10-9 win, Klink had five goals, two assists and three caused turnovers.

Caitlin Kurtz, Marvin Ridge softball: Senior pitcher got her 700th strikeout last week. Madison Arroyo, a sophomore, leads the team with six triples. The Mavericks are 9-2 and 2-0 in Southern Carolina 3A play.

Paige McConolgue, Albemarle girls' soccer: Six goals and two assists in two games last week.

Jena Ready, Charlotte Catholic girls' lacrosse: Two goals and two assists in win against Cuthbertson and six goals and an assists in 17-14 loss to Morrisville Green Hope.

Mitch Schneider, Ardrey Kell golf: 37.86 nine-hole average for three-year starter. Led team to wins against South Mecklenburg and Myers Park (first time the Knights have pulled of that double).

Cinderella Yang, Maiden girls' soccer: Helped team to 8-4-1 record. Senior forward had five goals and three assists in two wins last week. She has 16 goals and seven assists this season. Maiden has more wins than any boys' or girls' team in school history. Three freshmen start: Katie Foster (stopper), Rachel Pritchard (midfield) and Rachel Goodat (midfield).